The story of this place
Mount Keira — 'Geera' in the Wodi Wodi Aboriginal language, meaning 'wild fig' or 'large lagoon' — is the backdrop to Wollongong and the site of the Illawarra's first coal mine. The Albert Coal Mine opened in 1848, and by 1861 a tramway was hauling coal down the mountain to Belmore Basin for shipment to Sydney. The mountain became known as the 'Uluru of the Illawarra' for its spiritual significance to the local Aboriginal people, whose Dreaming stories describe the mountain as part of a great creation narrative. In 1982, the Kemira mine (as it was then known) made national headlines when 32 miners staged an underground sit-in strike to protest planned closures, spending 16 days in the tunnels before emerging to a community rally of thousands. The Mount Keira Summit Lookout offers 360-degree views from the escarpment across the city to the ocean, and the Mount Keira Ring Track is one of the Illawarra's most popular bushwalks.